Double play version, includes both Blu-ray and DVD formats.
Saints and Soldiers is an award winning American 2003 WWII war drama directed by Ryan Little. It is based around events shortly after the Malmedy massacre during the Battle of the Bulge, where four U.S. soldiers and a downed British airman need to reach Allied lines to pass on some vital intelligence.
December 1944. The German army rampages through the frozen wastes of Belgium's Ardennes Forest. Among the many Allied prisoners taken en route, a small band of American soldiers manage to escape. Without weapons and without food, ravaged by the cold, the men are determined to make it back to their frontline… but as their perilous journey takes its toll, loyalties become divided and lives hang in the balance.
A mesmerising, hallucinatory journey through the hellish landscape of war ravaged Europe, based on real life events ‘Saints and Soldiers’ tells the story of ordinary men and the mission that made them heroes.
Awards
- Stony Brook Film Festival 2004 – Won Best Feature
- Gloria Film Festival 2003 – Won Audience Award, Won Jury Award Best Picture
- Bearfest – Big Bear Lake International Film Festival 2003 – Won Audience Award Best Feature Film
- Heartland Film Festival 2003 – Won Grand Prize for Dramatic Feature
- Long Beach International Film Festival 2003 – Won Audience Award Feature Film
- Marco Island Film Festival 2003 – Won Audience Award Favorite Feature
- Ojai Film Festival 2003 – Won Best Narrative Feature
- Sacramento Festival of Cinema 2003 – Won Audience Award
- San Diego Film Festival 2003 – Won Audience Award Best Feature
- St. George Eclipse Film Festival 2003 – Won Audience Award
- Telluride Indiefest 2003 – Won Feature Film Winner
- Temecula Valley International Film Festival 2003 – Won Viewer's Choice Award Best Feature Film
- Independent Spirit Awards 2005 – Nominated Best Cinematography, Best First Feature
Reviews
“Thanks to an impressive cast of largely unknown actors, this small-scale, meticulously researched film tells its story with quiet conviction.” New York Times
“In his feature film debut, Little uses washed-out color and a you-are-there immediacy to tell a powerful wartime tale of survival, morality and honor.” New York Daily News
“It's no earthshaker, but the indie film is refreshingly different from the current movie norm, it's won more than 15 awards on the festival circuit, and war-movie aficionados will find it well worth the journey.” Seattle Post-Intelligencer
“Director-cinematographer Ryan Little neatly ratchets up the suspense while throwing emotional spotlights on the inner struggles of each combatant trapped in this hostile, frozen wilderness.” The Hollywood Reporter